Article from: My Family UK

The following ideas are for kids who are tireless bundles of energy, who always need entertainment. A family day out is a great way to get some fresh air and let the kids run around a bit.

For some brilliant, family-tailored days out, see our top choices below.

1) Adventure

• Your little monkeys can swing from tree to tree at a Go Ape! centre (several locations over the UK), provided they are over 10 years old.
• Under 18s must be accompanied by a participating adult, so make sure you’ve brought a head for heights.
• If wheels are more their thing then Mercedes-Benz World lets children drive real cars around specially designed tracks.
• Try go-karting with F1K in Loughborough.
• More unconventional fun can be had at Orb360 in Brighton, where kids over 1.5m tall crash downhill in giant inflatable bubbles at 30mph.
• Littler thrill-seekers can have big fun at Airkix: indoor skydiving for the over-fives.

2) Nature

• For fun with flora hit the Eden Project and experience tropical rainforests.Explore a real life Secret Garden at The Lost Gardens of Heligan.
• Simply go walking in the Lake District’s stunning natural environment.
• For fantastic fauna, visit the free-range environment Fota Wildlife Park in Co.Cork.
• Drusillas Park has more activities than you could shake a stick-insect at.
• Don’t forget London Zoo – the world’s oldest scientific zoo.

3) Bookworms

• Explore Winnie-the-Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood at Ashdown Forest in East Sussex where a guide to Pooh-sites can be picked up from the Forest Centre – and don’t forget to bring some pooh-sticks!
• The World of Beatrix Potter brings Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddle-Duck and the rest to life.
• Lovers of Oliver Twist must visit Dickens World, where there is a Victorian street made up of famous Dickensian places from the books.

4) Sports

• Learn to climb indoors at Edinburgh’s International Climbing Centre, the world’s biggest, where anyone over 1.4m tall can tackle the Aerial Assault course suspended 100m off the floor.
• Water-babies can learn to surf with the British Surfing Association at Fistral Beach in Newquay, or get into paddle-sports in Cardiff Bay.
• Keeping it cool is Manchester’s Chillfactore, where you can ski, snowboard and even visit an Alpine Village, indoors.
• As for footy, try a visit to the National Football Museum in Preston. Alternatively, your own beloved team most likely has a stadium tour of its own so pass on the legacy!

5) Science & Technology

• “Exterminate” dull weekends at the Doctor Who Museum, Blackpool.
• For science of a more Earth-bound kind, Cardiff’s Techniquest is a very hands-on centre for exploring maths, engineering and technology.
• The Catalyst Science and Discovery Centre in Widnes focuses on the colourful and often combustible world of chemistry and has family workshops during half-term holidays.
• The National Science Museum in London always has loads of informative exhibitions and, on designated Science Nights, kids can even camp overnight among the exhibits!

6) Dinosaurs

• Track T-Rex or play dino-themed mini golf at The Big Dinosaur Adventure in Norfolk.
• Dorchester’s Dinosaur Museum has life-size reconstructions of all the favourites and in this museum kids are encouraged to touch them!
• That isn’t the case at The Natural History Museum but for the brave young archaeologists they do have a moving, roaring, Tyrannosaurus!
• For informative outdoors fun, go fossil-hunting along the Lyme Regis Jurassic Coast.

7) Space

• The National Science Museum has a permanent exhibit tracing the story of the space rocket and all sorts of interstellar info.
• Spaceport in Seacombe makes kids feel like astronauts with its simulators, planetarium and interactive audio-visual galleries.
• At the National Space Centre in Leicester, your child can even learn how to run a space mission in their Challenger Centre!
• If your kids are more 'Skywalker' than 'Sky At Night', then Laser Quest centres offer games of laser-tag in suitably futuristic arenas.

8) Historical

• The Imperial War Museum North is about more than just the facts; it’s about people, their lives and stories and loads of interaction – ever wondered what a WWI trench smelled like?
• From the Navy to pirates, life on the high seas can be explored at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.
• In York, the Jorvik Viking Centre presents the sights – and smells! – of Viking life, with reenactments over half-term holidays.
• Also great at half-term, or any other time, is Warwick Castle, where kids can be knights for the day.
• Or if your little terrors like things a bit more gory try The London Dungeons for a gruesome history lesson.

9) The Arts

• Budding poets can see Wordsworth’s cottage in the Lake District.
• Young thespians should tour The Globe.
• In Spring/Summer the open air cliff-top Minack theatre is a stunning venue to take in a play.
• For kids in the North-West who want to get stuck into arts projects and workshops, check out the Action Factory Community Arts website for the latest events.
• The newly opened British Music Experience charts the stars, the trends, fads and fashions of the last 60 years of popular music so you and the kids can learn about each other’s eras.

10) Machines

• Take a spin 35m into the air on the world’s largest rotating boat-lift in Falkirk, a futuristic addition to one of Scotland’s oldest and most scenic canal networks.
• Move off the wheel and get behind it at Diggerland, where kids can drive and operate heavy-duty construction vehicles in a diggable environment.
• From trams, buses and tubes to artwork and posters, the London Transport Museum is a cool place to learn everything about the heritage of London’s transport.
• Or check out the 57 varieties of aircraft and cockpit sections at Newark Air Museum which has been capturing kids’ imaginations for over 40 years.

Further Information

For further information, and for more great ways to have fun with your family, log on to www.myfamilyuk.com. With a huge collection of articles covering everything from child safety to rainy day activities, you'll find all the help, guidance and entertainment you need to be a great parent. Go to My Family UK now!